Israel transferred on Monday 92 pro-Fatah Palestinians to the West Bank, two days after they fled clashes with rival Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip.
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An Israeli soldier escorts blindfolded Palestinian men, who fled to Israel from Gaza, at a military base near Kibbutz Nahal-Oz, just outside the Gaza Strip August 3, 2008. [Xinhua/Reuters Photo]
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The spokesperson of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed with Xinhua that 92 Palestinians were taken by two buses escorted by Israeli police and army vehicles to Jericho Monday afternoon.
Palestinian officials said the Gaza escapees will be housed at the Palestinian National Security headquarters in Jericho.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak decided late Sunday to allow a group of Fatah activists who fled the Gaza Strip over the weekend to be transferred to Palestinian National Authority in the West Bank.
Out of the 188 Fatah members who entered Israel, 35 were sent back to Gaza on Sunday at the request of Abbas, who had initially asked Israel to treat the wounded and only facilitate the transfer to the West Bank of five members of the pro-Fatah Helles clan, including its leader Ahmed Helles.
Sixteen Palestinians, most of which belong to the clan, were being treated in two Israeli hospitals, according to IDF spokesperson.
The decision not to send the fleeing Fatah supporters back to Gaza also came after the Association for Civil Rights in Israel petitioned the High Court of Justice.
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Israeli soldiers escort a blindfolded Palestinian boy, who fled to Israel from Gaza, at a military base near Kibbutz Nahal-Oz, just outside the Gaza Strip August 3, 2008. [Xinhua/Reuters Photo]
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The petitioners stated that forcing the Fatah loyalists to return to Gaza could endanger their lives and called it a serious violation of human rights and of Israeli law.
The wrangle over the fate of the Fatah refugees came a day after the bloodiest day of Hamas-Fatah fighting since Hamas' takeover of Gaza in June 2007. In all, 11 people were killed and dozens wounded during a Hamas raid on a Fatah stronghold in Gaza City on Saturday.
